What is Zen?

Sacred Texts

As expressed in the famous description of Zen attributed to Bodhidharma, “A
special transmission outside the scriptures, not relying on words and
letters / Direct pointing to the human mind, seeing one’s true nature and
attaining Buddhahood,” the essential standpoint of the Zen school is not
to depend on words and letters. Nevertheless, it does regard the study and chanting of sacred
texts as an important part of Zen practice. The texts and sutras most
often used in Zen temples are the following:

Sutra-Opening Verse
開經偈 (Kaikyoge)

The Dharma, incomparably exquisite and profound, is rarely met with even in
hundreds of thousands of millions of kalpas. We are now permitted to hold
it, see it, hear it, and accept it. May we awaken to the deep true Mind of
the Tathagata.

Purification
懺悔文 (Sangemon)

All the evil karma ever created by me in the past;
on account of my beginningless attachment, aversion, and ignorance;
arising from my actions, speech and thought;
I now confess openly and fully.

Tisarana: Taking Refuge in the Three Treasures
三歸戒文 (Sankikaimon)

This is read at funerals three times following recitation of the
“Purification.” In it the devotee pledges to seek awakening with the help of
the Three Treasures: the Buddha (the fully liberated being); the Dharma (the
truth to which the Buddha has awakened and the teachings through which he
expresses it); and the Sangha (the community of fellow beings seeking
awakening).

Heart Sutra
摩訶般若波羅蜜多心經 （Maka Hannya Hara Mita Shin Gyo）

The Heart Sutra, translated by Xuanzang 玄奘 (600?–664), is the shortest of
the texts that constitute the Mahayana prajna-paramita literature,
consisting of only 276 characters in its Chinese version. One of the most
important and popular sutras of East Asian Buddhism, it is recited by the
believers of nearly every Mahayana school. Its teaching centers on the
“heart” of the Mahayana Buddhist teaching, the doctrine of sunyata
(emptiness), expressed in its teaching that “form is no other than
emptiness, emptiness is no other than form).

Avalokiteshvara Boddhisattva, when practicing deeply the Prajna Paramita,
perceived that all five skandhas in their own being are empty and was saved
from all suffering. O Shariputra, form does not differ from emptiness,
emptiness does not differ from form. That which is form is emptiness, that
which is emptiness, form. The same is true of feelings, perceptions,
impulses, consciousness. O Shariputra, all dharmas are marked with
emptiness. They are without birth or death; are not tainted nor pure, do not
increase nor decrease. Therefore, in emptiness: no form, no feelings, no
perceptions, no impulses, no consciousness, no eyes, no ears, no nose, no
tongue, no body, no mind, no color, no sound, no smell, no taste, no touch,
no object of mind, no world of eyes, through to no world of mind
consciousness. No ignorance and also no extinction of it, through to no old
age and death and also no extinction of it. No suffering, no origination, no
stopping, no path, no cognition, also no attainment, with nothing to attain.
The Bodhisattvas depend on Prajna Paramita and their minds are unhindered.
Without any hindrance, no fears exist. Far apart from every deluded view
they dwell in Nirvana. In the Three Worlds all Buddhas depend on Prajna
Paramita and attain unsurpassed, complete, perfect Enlightenment. Therefore
know: the Prajna Paramita is the great transcendent mantra, is the great
bright mantra, is the utmost mantra, is the supreme mantra, which is able to
relieve all suffering and is true, not false. So proclaim the Prajna
Paramita mantra, proclaim the mantra that says: Gyate, gyate, paragyate,
parasam gyate, bodhi svaha!

The Dharani to Protect Against Misfortune
消災妙吉祥神呪（消災呪） (Shosai
Myokichijo Jinshu)

This dharani, translated in the eighth century by the esoteric Buddhist
master Amoghavajra (C., Pukung 不空; 705–774), is said to have been preached
by the Buddha in the Jogo-ten (the fourth dhyana heaven in the world of
form, inhabited by beings who will never return to the world of desire). The
Buddha taught it as a means to avoid all misfortune and attain all good
fortune. As it is a dharani, that is, a text whose efficacy depends on the
sounds of the words rather than their meaning, it is left untranslated and
chanted in the Sino-Japanese pronunciation, which is in turn a
transliteration from the original Sanskrit.

The Avalokiteśvara Sutra is actually the twenty-fifth chapter of Kumarajava’s
translation of the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra, highly revered in Mahayana
Buddhism and often called the “King of Sutras,” consists of a prologue and
twenty-eight chapters, but the only one of these chapers that is read on a
daily basis in the Rinzai school is the twenty-fifth chapter, the
“Guanshiyin pusa pumen pin” 觀世音菩薩普門品 (Chapter on the universal gate of
Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara). The Avalokiteśvara Sutra is thus regarded as an
independent sutra by many devotees. Within the twenty-fifth chapter, the
latter portion, written in verse, is known as the “Verse of the
World-Honored One” 世尊偈 (Seson ge), and is often read separately during
ceremonies.

Avalokiteśvara is the bodhisattva of compassion (karuna), which, along with
wisdom (prajñA), is one of the two fundamental virtues of the Mahayana
Buddhist path of liberation for all beings. Avalokiteśvara is regarded as
having thirty-three different manifestations in order to help sentient
beings in a manner best corresponding to the circumstances.

The text of the Avalokiteśvara Sutra is too long to reproduce here, but
excellent English translations are available on the Internet; search using
“Lotus Sutra Chapter 25.” The Japanese reading, romanized, is available at:http://onedropzendo.org/sutras/SogenjiSutrabook.pdf

Dharani of Great Compassion
大悲圓滿無礙神呪（Daihi Enmon Bukai Jinshu, or
Daihishu)

The Dharani of Great Compassion is one of the most frequently recited sutras
in the Zen canon, being offered during morning services, rituals for
departed priests and laypeople, and on many other occasions. It comprises
the dharani section of a longer text, the Thousand-armed, Thousand-eyed
Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara’s Sutra of Dharanis on the Vast, Perfect, and
Unobstructed Mind of Great Compassion 千手千眼観自在菩薩広大円満無礙大悲心陀羅尼経, which, as the
title suggests, is the Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva’s dharani to arouse the
mind of infinite compassion.

As it is a dharani, that is, a text whose efficacy depends on the sounds of
the words rather than their meaning, it is left untranslated and chanted in
the Sino-Japanese pronunciation, which is in turn a transliteration of the
original Sanskrit. A translation is available at:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/bud/mzb/mzb02.htm

Prayer on the Occasion of Feeding the Hungry Ghosts
開甘露門（施餓鬼） (Kai Kanromon, or
Daisegaki)

This text is chanted during Rinzai morning services and at the Sanmon Segaki-e
ceremony, a ritual performed at temples during the time of Obon in mid-July
or -August for the liberation of those who suffer in the realm of the preta, the hungry ghosts.

Translation by D. T. Suzuki:

If one wishes to know all the Buddhas of the past, present, and future, one
should contemplate the nature of this Dharmadhatu essentially as the
creation of Absolute Mind.

Adoration to the Buddhas in the ten quarters; adoration to the Dharma
pervading the ten quarters; adoration to the Sangha in the ten quarters;
adoration to Sakyamuni the Buddha who is our Master; adoration to Kwanzeon
the Bodhisattva, who is the great compassionate and pitying one, ready to
save beings from afflictions; adoration to Ananda the Arhat who is the
expounder of the Teaching.

Adoration to Hoshin[2] the Tathagata; adoration to Taho[3] the Tathagata;
adoration to Myoshishin[4] the Tathagata; adoration to Kohashin[5] the
Tathagata; adoration to Rifui[6] the Tathagata; adoration to Kanroo[7] the
Tathagata; adoration to Omito[8] the Tathagata.

By the supernatural power of this Dharani the food and drink is purified,
and this we offer to the spiritual beings as numerous as the sands of the
Ganga. We pray that they shall all be fully satisfied and abandon their
greed; that they shall all leave their abodes of darkness and be born in the
blissful paths of existence; and further that taking refuge in the Triple
Treasure they shall awaken the desire for supreme enlightenment and finally
come to the realization of it. The merit they thus attain is inexhaustible
and will continue on to the end of time, making all beings equally share in
this Dharma-food. O you hosts of spiritual beings, we make this offering of
food to you all, which we pray will fill the ten quarters and that all
beings of your kind will partake of it. By the practice of this meritorious
deed we pray that we repay what we owe to our parents, who have done all
they could for our sakes. May those who are still alive continue to enjoy
their happy and prosperous lives for ever, while those who are no more with
us be released from suffering and born in the land of bliss.

We pray that all sentient beings in the triple world who are recipients of
the fourfold benefaction, together with those beings suffering in the three
evil paths of existence and tormented with the eight kinds of calamities,
may repent of all their sins and be cleansed of all their sores, so that
they may all be released from the cycle of transmigration and be born in the
land of purity. We pray to all the Buddhas, all the Bodhisattva-Mahasattvas
in the ten quarters, of the past, present, and future, and to
Mahaprajna-paramita, that by virtue of this merit universally prevailing,
not only we but all beings shall equally attain Buddhahood.

Notes

1. It is difficult to tell how this dharani came to be inserted here. As
most dharanis are, it is devoid of sense from the human point of view; but
it may not be necessarily so to the hungry ghosts, for whom the prayer is
offered. Can this be restored to the original Sanskrit as follows? “Namah
sarva-tathagatavalokite! Om! Sambala, sambala! Hum! Namah surupaya
tathagataya! Tadyatha, Om, suru[paya], surupaya, surupaya, suru[paya], svaha!
Namah samantabuddhanam, vam!” “Be adored! O all the Tathagatas who are
regarded [as our protectors]; Om! Provision, provision! Hum! Adored be the
Tathagata Beautifully Formed! Namely: Om! To the Beautifully-formed One! To
the Beautifully formed One! To the Beautifully-formed One! Hail! Adored be
all the Buddhas! Vam!”

Dharani of the Victorious Buddha-Crown
佛頂尊勝陀羅尼 (Bucchin Son Shin Darani)

This dharani is read together with the “Dharani to Protect Against Misfortune”
as an invocation to ward off disease and misfortune, dispel evil, encourage
good, and promote health and long life. Its full title is the “Dharani of the
Victorious Buddha-Crown for Purifying and Eliminating All Evil Paths”
浄除一切悪道仏頂尊勝陀羅尼; it is the dharani section of the “Sutra on the Dharani of the
Victorious Buddha-Crown” 仏頂尊勝陀羅尼経.

As it is a dharani, that is, a text whose efficacy depends on the sounds of
the words rather than their meaning, it is left untranslated and chanted in
the Sino-Japanese pronunciation, which is in turn a transliteration of the
original Sanskrit. A translation is available at:
http://www.sacred-texts.com/bud/mzb/mzb02.htm

The Diamond Sutra
金剛般若波羅蜜經 (金剛經) (Kongo Hannya Harami Kyo)

The Diamond Sutra, one of the most important and popular of the PrajñA-paramita sutras, exists in several Chinese translations, the most
popular being that of Kumarajiva (350–ca. 409). In Zen the Diamond Sutra is
famous as the text heard by the Sixth Patriarch Huineng when, as a youth, he
was carrying a load of firewood into town and heard a man chanting a
Buddhist sutra. Deeply struck by the line “Give rise to the mind that does
not abide in anything,” he was inspired to seek instruction from the Fifth
Patriarch, Hongren. The sutra records Shakyamuni’s discourse to Subhuti in
the Jetavana Monastery in Shravasti, teaching the fundamental emptiness of
all phenomena and the importance of non-abiding. The sutra has been popular
in the Zen school throughout its history.

The Śurangama Dharanī (Ryogon Shu) used in Zen temples is the dharani
portion of the seventh fascicle of the ten-fascicle Śurangama Sutra
translated by Hanla Midi 般刺蜜帝 in 705. It is generally recited, either while
sitting or performing gyodo (walking in line inside the ceremonial hall), at
services honoring the Zen ancestors and other important rituals. The text
explains the powers accruing from meditation and the recitation of dharani,
and extolls the mind that remains unmoved regardless of what distractions or
temptations confront it.

The Ten-phrase Kanzeon-sutra for Extending Life
延命十句觀音經 (Enmei Jikku
Kannongyo)

The Enmei Jikku Kannongyo is a short text much recited in Rinzai Zen. Hakuin,
especially, encouraged its use. Hakuin identified it as an excerpt from the
Gaowang Guanshiyin jing, but its actual origins are unclear. Hakuin promoted it as
a means of averting misfortune and extending life, as long life is important
for deep attainment in whatever path one takes, whether that of good works
or meditative practice.

Avalokitesvara, Perceiver of the cries of the world! We take refuge in the
Buddha! We have our source in Buddha; We are joined with Buddha,
With Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, permanence, joy, self, and purity. In the
morning our every thought is Kanzeon; in the evening our every thought is
Kanzeon. Thought after thought arises in mind. Thought after thought is one
with mind.

The Four Bodhisattva Vows
四弘誓願文 (Shiku seigan)

The Four Bodhisattva Vows are the fundamental vows of the Zen Buddhist path,
expressing the bodhisattva’s resolution to attain awakening in order to
liberate all sentient beings. With enlightenment comes a realization of the
fundamental equality of all things, and the understanding that to liberate
oneself one must liberate other beings, and that to liberate other beings is
none other than to liberate oneself. In this lies the unity of wisdom and
compassion. The Four Boddhisattva Vows are chanted in Zen monasteries at the
end of daily services, and of memorial services for the departed.

Sentient beings are numberless: I vow to liberate them all.
Desires are inexhaustible: I vow to end them all.
The Dharma gates are infinite: I vow to master them all.
The Buddha way is unsurpassable: I vow to attain it.

Verse of Homage to Buddha’s Relics
舎利礼文 (Shariraimon)

Relics (śarira) are generally of three types: bones, hair, or flesh. The
word śarira, however, usually refers to the remains of Shakyamuni following
his cremation, remains that were divided up among his followers and
enshrined in stupas in various parts of India. In Zen, the “Verse of Homage
to Buddha’s Relics” is chanted primarily at funerals following the actual
cremation. The verse is a declaration of our desire to give rise to true bodhicitta through our own faith and the supernatural grace of the Buddha,
and to fully pursue the path of the bodhisattva.

Wholeheartedly we pay reverence to the relics of the true body of the
Tathagata Shakyamuni, endowed with all the virtues; to the dharma body which
is the fundamental ground; and to his stupa, which is the entire universe.
We venerate the one who manifested a body for our sake, entering us as we
enter him. Through the compassion of the Buddha, we realize awakening. By
means of the Buddha’s spiritual power, we benefit living beings, arouse the
thought of liberation, cultivate bodhisattva practice, and together enter
perfect nirvana and attain knowledge of the equality of all things. Now let
us reverently bow.

Hakuin Zenji’s Song Of Zazen
白隱禪師坐禪和讚 (Hakuin Zenji Zazen Wasan)

The “Song Of Zazen” was written by Hakuin Ekaku 白隱慧鶴 (1686–1769), the great
Zen master who revived the Japanese Rinzai school. Zazen is the central
practice of the Zen tradition, but the meditative mind should be maintained
not only during seated meditation but in all activities, whether walking,
standing, sitting, or lying. “Singing or dancing, we are the voice of the
Dharma”—wherever we are is the Pure Land, and our own bodies are the body of
the Buddha. The “Song of Zazen” conveys this teaching in easy to remember,
easy to recite verses, making it one of the most frequently chanted texts at
sermons and meditation sessions for laypeople and clergy alike.

All sentient beings are essentially Buddhas. As with water and ice, there is
no ice without water; apart from sentient beings, there are no Buddhas. Not
knowing how close the truth is we seek it far away—what a pity! We are like
one who in the midst of water cries out desperately in thirst. We are like
the son of a rich man who wandered away among the poor. The reason we
transmigrate through the Six Realms is because we are lost in the darkness
of ignorance. Going further and further astray in the darkness, how can we
ever be free from birth-and-death? As for the samadhi of the Mahayana, there
are no words to praise it fully; the six paramitas, such as giving,
maintaining the precepts, and various other good deeds like invoking the
Buddha’s name, repentance, and spiritual training, all finally return to
this. Even those who have experienced it for only a single sitting will see
all karma erased. Nowhere will they find evil paths, and the Pure Land will
not be far away. If we listen even once with open heart to this truth, then
praise it and gladly embrace it, how much more so then if on reflecting
within ourselves we directly realize Self-nature, giving proof to the truth
that Self-nature is no nature. We will have gone far beyond idle
speculation. The gate of the oneness of cause and effect is thereby opened,
and not-two, not-three, straight ahead runs the Way. Realizing the form of
no-form as form, whether going or returning we cannot be any place else.
Realizing the thought of no-thought as thought, whether singing or dancing,
we are the voice of the Dharma. How vast and wide the unobstructed sky of
samadhi! How bright and clear the perfect moonlight of the Fourfold Wisdom!
At this moment what more need we seek? As the eternal tranquility of Truth
reveals itself to us, this very place is the Land of Lotuses and this very
body is the body of the Buddha.